A toddler watched in fear as the heart of his young brother stopped after choking on a sandwich. The incident happened inside the home of a childcare worker in Auckland.

On July 16, 1-year-old Jack and 4-year-old brother Michael was left in the home of an "educarer," Leeann Kelly, who worked at Jemma's Home-based Education and Childcare Service.

Jack was eating a sandwich when he choked. The bite he took apparently went down the wrong way, causing a block in his airway. Cameron, Jack's father, said Jack heart stopped because he couldn't breathe. He asked media publications not to publish their last name.

As Michael watched what was happening, he became terrified for his brother. Ms. Kelly began giving Jack CPR after calling the paramedics. Help arrived soon after and the paramedics inserted tubes into Jack's airways.

Cameron and Elena, wife and mother of the boys, were both at work. They immediately rushed to the Starship hospital where they saw doctors working to revive 1-year-old Jack who will be turning a year older next week.

When the doctors allowed Cameron and Elena to see Jack, they saw their little boy "shoved full of tubes" and in an induced coma.

Jack is still alive and now awake. The doctors said he was in a stable condition. However, a scan showed that his brain damage may be permanent because he was deprived of oxygen.

The choking incident is still under investigation. Cameron said there were still questions that needed answers, but what matters to him is that Jack will recover and return home.

Elena, Jack's mother, watched over her son day and night. Cameron said she was all "broken up." He said they took time off from work to be with their son and they were struggling financially with Jack's medical bills.

Ms. Kelly has been looking after Michael since he was a baby and Jack since he was three months old. She cried when she spoke about the choking incident. She said she loved Jack and has visited the hospital several times to be with the family.

Ms. Kelly's Facebook post read, "After a lot of self-doubt and questioning, I have come to the conclusion that what I did during this tragedy was exactly what I was supposed to do and I couldn't have done anything better."

Her employment agency and the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment are currently investigating the incident.

What to if a child is choking

It always pays to know what to do in an emergency situation. The most important thing is to not panic and concentrate on the task at hand.

If a child is choking, bend the child forward and give a sharp blow using the heel of your hand between the child's shoulder blades. Check if the block in his airway has cleared before giving another blow. If the child is still choking after five blows, try doing chest thrusts.

If back blows don't work, place your hand on the middle of the child's back and your other hand in the centre of his or her chest. Using the heel of your hand, do 5 chest thrusts. It's like doing CPR compressions but in a slower motion with sharper thrusts. Check between each thrust to see if the block has cleared. Call the paramedics if the child is till choking. Continue doing five chest thrusts until help arrives. Perform CPR if the child becomes unconscious.

Watch video below to see how to help a child who is choking:

RELATED STORIES